The Goddess Granted Me the [Hatching] Skill and Somehow I Became the Strongest Tamer, Commanding Mythical and Divine Beasts - 8

A few days after contracting with Purple as my familiar, I gathered my family together, saying, “I have something important to discuss.”

“What is it? What’s this about?” my father asked, looking puzzled.

“You’ve been working from morning till night lately without much conversation. It’s unusual,” added my mother, eyeing me curiously.

Father and mother looked at me with puzzled expressions.

“Brother, is it something important?” Celia asked, furrowing her brow and placing a hand on her chest, looking uneasy. It seemed like she had a premonition of something, and I resolved myself to speak up.

“The truth is, I’m currently working as an adventurer,” I confessed.

The faces of my family members changed at my confession.

“I knew it! So that’s what it was!” Celia exclaimed.

“You knew?” I was surprised by Celia’s words; I hadn’t expected her to have noticed.

“Lately, your behavior seemed strange, so I secretly investigated. That’s when I saw you leaving wearing father’s adventurer gear…” Celia’s eyes welled up as she looked up at me.

“You… have you really been doing that?” Father asked.

“Is your health okay?” Mother added, concern etched on her face.

“Actually, I retired as an adventurer because of an injury from my adventurer days. It’s true that it pays well, but it’s not something worth risking your life for,” I explained.

“That’s right. You never once mentioned wanting to become an adventurer before,” Mother said.

I never intended to become an adventurer either. I imagined continuing my ordinary job, living out my life quietly in town.

“I know about the debt this household has. It’s why Celia gave up her dream of studying in the capital,” I continued, explaining the situation where the family took on debt for my treatment, and Celia was giving up her dreams.

In such a situation, I couldn’t simply pretend not to know and return to my old life.

“Did you… realize?” I asked.

To spare me worry, they must have intended to keep this a secret among the three of them.

Ignoring the confusion of the three, I took out a pouch of money from my pocket.

“Here is the money I’ve earned as an adventurer,” I said, loosening the string and spreading the contents on the table. It was the result of my daily efforts collecting herbs.

“With this money, I want Celia to study in the capital,” I said, making my wish known to my parents.

“Brother!” Celia exclaimed.

“If we knew, we wouldn’t have gone into debt to buy medicine to save your life,” Celia said.

“But I don’t want anyone to be unhappy! I want to start over with this money,” I continued.

Father, who had taught me swordsmanship since I was a child, and Mother, who cooked every day and treated me kindly, and even my younger sister, who scolded me firmly despite being younger than me.

I want everyone to be able to live happily.

“With this much, we can manage Celia’s tuition,” Father said, giving me a strong look.

“But there’s no guarantee you’ll earn this much in the future. Besides, being an adventurer is dangerous. Do you understand?” Mother asked.

“Yes. Even though I’m grateful for having been saved, while you were an adventurer, what do you think we were thinking?” Celia said.

“I was very scared when my brother was struck by lightning to protect me and fell unconscious… I thought he would never wake up again. I don’t want to experience that feeling again,” Celia said, tearfully.

Everyone worries, and everyone tells me to quit being an adventurer. Surely, if I quit being an adventurer and worked normally, I could keep my family of four going without hurting anyone. But…

“I didn’t plan to become an adventurer until something like this happened. But I’m having fun being an adventurer now. At first, I started without thinking of the dangers of paying for Celia’s tuition and repaying my debts. But then I thought that someone’s life might be saved with the herbs I delivered. Thinking like that, I think this is a rewarding job.”

At the Adventurer’s Guild, there are times when I receive words of gratitude from the receptionist. I’ve also seen children at the city’s clinic, their injuries healed with potions.

If I can see someone smile because of the herbs I’ve collected, there’s nothing happier than that. Even if they try to stop me, I don’t think I could ever extinguish this feeling.

Father and I locked eyes silently. I couldn’t know what he had in mind when he was an adventurer, but I knew my father would understand my feelings.

“I approve of Celia’s study in the royal capital. I originally intended for her to go, and I’ve been taking on extra work for that reason,” Father declared.

“I-is that so?”

“Of course. Don’t underestimate me. As the beloved daughter’s only father, it’s my duty not to bring misfortune upon her! Even if I collapse from overwork, I’ll look after her until she marries!”

With a firm declaration, Father turned his head away with a snort. It seems I wasn’t the only one who had been secretly advancing plans.

“Really, both of you, Klaus… doing whatever you want without consulting anyone,” Mother said, looking incredulous at us as a family.

“Um, so I can go to the royal capital…?”

Caught off guard by the turn of events, Celia murmured softly.

“Thank you… very much.”

Celia covered her mouth, tears streaming down her face. She had admired the royal capital since she was young, always expressing her desire to study magic seriously at a school someday. Even though she had given up, it must have been a joy to see that wish fulfilled.

“I’m so happy, Celia.”

“Yes, thanks to you, brother.”

Celia clung to me, burying her face in my chest. I gently stroked her head to comfort her.

“Oh, and Klaus, about you…”

Scratching his head, Father wore a complex expression, unusual for someone who always made quick decisions.

Mother was also curious about what Father was going to say.

“Alongside Celia’s study, you should go to the royal capital too.”

“Huh? Me too, to the royal capital!?”

Completely surprised by these unexpected words.

“Because I taught you, your sword skills should be decent enough. You should be fine against the low-level monsters there,” Father explained.

Father’s words were true; during herb collection, I had fought goblins a few times without any issues.

“However, being just an adventurer will have its limits eventually, and there’s no guarantee of future work,” Father continued.

Adventuring is a job that depends on the availability of work; there are times when there is no work at all, especially in the frontier areas where the market fluctuates drastically.

“I’ll give you a year’s grace period. Go to the royal capital and obtain the qualification of ‘National Adventurer.’ If you can do that, I’ll allow you to continue being an adventurer. If not, come back home.”

It seemed like Father’s greatest concession. When I think about it, Father and Mother both saw me nearly dying once. Normally, they wouldn’t want to approve of me becoming an adventurer.

“Alright, I’ll try under those conditions.”

Among the numerous adventurers, only a handful ever achieve the title of ‘National Adventurer.’ I vowed right then and there that I would reach that goal.